daredevil magician david blaine goes high voltage in his latest stunt. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> good morning. i'm lynn berry. today we begin with a high stakes debate. all eyes turn to denver for tonight's first presidential debate of the 2012 race, and a new nbc news "wall street journal" poll shows president obama is holding on to his national lead, but not by much. 49% of likely voters favor the president while 46% prefer mitt romney. that's only a 3% edge for obama, which is within the survey's margin of error, but when it comes to a poll of registered voters the president widens his lead over romney to 7 points, 51% to 44. and, finally, four in ten surveyed now say the nation is headed in the right direction. that's the highest amount since june 2009. meanwhile, both candidates took a break from their debate prep on tuesday to make a few unscheduled stops. nbc's steve handlesman reports from denver. >> reporter: the pressure is intense. president obama took time out for a visit to hoover dam. >> it's spectacular and i've nev